Lemmey - Thanks man!

FSN - Flash Gordon, eh?  I hope that's a good thing.  I've certainly been having a good time.  Thanks for the compliments on the scenery, and glad to hear the characters are interesting; I fear I may have gone too far. That is, too much info on too many people.  I'm starting to feel like I should have had less detail or less personalities.  We'll see how it goes.

Regarding coordination, at least some of that is by design.  While they have a few combat and/or military veterans thrown in, quite a few of the platoon members are simply village members with no training or experience (former high school or university students, the butcher, pharmacist, dentist, etc...), ditto for the significant number (~1/3) of the platoon members that are recently arrived European refugees.  On top of that, the Europeans and the American don't speak Hebrew!  So, as time goes on they will get better, and certainly in future wars they will be more professional.

In any case, thanks for reading and sharing some comments, I really appreciate it!

V/R,
Jack

All,

AKA, the third fight in the Battle of Mar Gush

It is 0505 on 30 March 1948, and while the 2nd Platoon is battling soldiers of the Jordanian Army on the northern edge of the Jewish village of Mar Gush, pickets have alerted Dor Peleg, former Sergeant in the Jewish Brigade, Palmach member returned home, and commander of the 3rd Platoon, of enemy soldiers approaching from the south, where the Nelani River, passing east of the village, cuts back to the west.  The Company commander, Captain Avi Peleg, is in the north with 2nd Platoon, and 1st Platoon is manning the roadblock east of the village on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road, so the 38-year old platoon commander does what he must: he immediately deploys his unit to the southeastern corner of the village, where they occupy prepared positions and steady themselves for the coming onslaught.


Overview, north is up, the village of Mar Gush at top left, a small citrus orchard at top center, a Jewish trench line at top right, Cedar Hill at bottom left, and the Nelani River at bottom center/bottom right.  3rd Platoon is deployed in the trench at top center/top right (north/northeast), and the Jordanians are deployed at bottom center/bottom right (south/southeast).  But things are about to get a little tricky on ya!  Old Dor's a cagey veteran, got a few tricks up his sleeve; let's see how it shakes out.


The fighting is fierce as the Jordanian infantry pushes hard to take the Jewish trench-line.  To see how the fight turned out, please check the blog at:
http://swordofgideonwargaming.blogspot.com/2017/06/war-for-independence-fight-3.html

Well, that wraps this one up.  Next up is 2nd Platoon moving east to eject the Jordanians from their foothold in the village, stay tuned.

V/R,
Jack

Cracking report again, Jack.

I think you should have given them reinforcements.  Have a new rule so that you have to keep feeding them in. 

Cheers - Phil.

PS....Is the river frozen ?....Everybody seems to be able to walk on it. 

Phil,

Thanks buddy, but...

"...should have given them reinforcements..." and "...have to keep feeding them in."

Why is everyone always plotting against me???

And if you're able to sculpt us a scale river with some actual depth to it, please do, you can sign me up for two! 

V/R,
Jack

Oh...No, no, no.

You should be cutting the figures off at the waist, so it looks like they're wading through the water. Fix tiny little plastic bases, painted the same as the excellent river...Job done. 

Cheers - Phil 

Quote from: Techno on 26 June 2017, 06:27:42 PM
Oh...No, no, no.

You should be cutting the figures off at the waist, so it looks like they're wading through the water. Fix tiny little plastic bases, painted the same as the excellent river...Job done. 

Cheers - Phil 

Like these:-

Good report. Pretty sure the British Jews would have used a more anglicised version of their names, also, how are this polyglot from race communicating? Most English could not speak a second language until the later C20th?

Quote from: Ithoriel on 26 June 2017, 06:38:49 PM
Like these:-

Nice - and the bottom half can be used to portage canoes, etc. two figures for the price of one.

That's a cool idea for the river crossers, but I can't afford to have two sets of troops, one for rivers, one for not 

Lemmey - "Pretty sure the British Jews would have used a more anglicised version of their names..."
I suppose they de-Anglicized them when they came/returned to Palestine.

"...how are this polyglot from race communicating?"
Hand signals, pidgin Hebrew, pidgin English, Yiddish, French.  Just like they did in real life.  They had a helluva Hebrew immersion program going on

V/R,
Jack

All,

AKA, the fourth and final fight in the Battle of Mar Gush

It is 0630 on 31 March 1948, and Danny Tzur's 2nd Platoon is preparing to finish its fight on the northern edge of the village.  Two days ago, 1st Platoon fought the company's first fight in the War for Independence; Jordanian Army troops advanced on Mar Gush and the Jews were able to deflect it.  Rebuffed, the Arabs returned the next morning, and Danny's platoon fought them to a standstill, with both sides falling back.  While that was happening, 1st Platoon was manning the roadblock on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem Road, east of the village.  They had not received any direct contact from Jordanian infantry, but as of 0630 on 31 March they'd been under intermittent shell fire for about 24 straight hours.  Additionally, yesterday morning, while Danny's men were fighting on the north side of the village, 3rd Platoon was involved in a desperate fight on the southern side of Mar Gush, barely turning back the Jordanian advance.  

Overnight, Jordanian infantry infiltrated back into the northern end of Mar Gush, and now that morning has arrived, Danny is leading the counterattack to eject the Arabs from the village.


Overview, north is up.  At center left is Cemetery Hill, and at center right is The Orchard, both the scenes of much bloodletting during the fight yesterday morning.  Strewn across the bottom of the map are various homes and shops on the north side of Mar Gush.  Of particular prominence are: Dor's house at bottom center left (Dor is the platoon commander fro 3rd Platoon), Giora's house (far right, just above the road), the Mayor's office (bottom right), and the Post Office (bottom center right, just right of the fruit stand).

The Jewish platoon (squad, really) is split into two sections (left, coming up Cemetery Hill, and bottom center left, coming up on Dor's House).  The Jordanians are spread across the right (east) side of the map: a Bren team on the north bank of the Nelani River (top right), a Bren team on the 2nd floor of the Mayor's Office (bottom right), two soldiers on the roof of Giora's House (far right), and three pickets.  One is on the road at top center, one is in The Orchard at center right, and one is on the 2nd floor of the Post Office (bottom center right, right of the fruit stand).


Danny, Eli, and Davi assault the Post Office.  To see how the fight went, please check the blog at:
http://swordofgideonwargaming.blogspot.com/2017/06/war-for-independence-fight-4.html

Thus concludes the Battle of Mar Gush.  Total casualties:
Jews:
3 men killed in action
3 men discharged due to permanent injury
7 men wounded but able to return to duty within 30 days
2 men wounded but able to return to duty immediately

Jordanians:
55 men killed in action
10 men captured

A tremendous amount of arms and munitions were also captured, and it was all passed along to other Palmach/Haganah units, not even a single Bren was kept in the company (that's for you, Kyote).  Avi was quite proud of his lieutenants and his men, they had proven themselves in the crucible of combat.  And while this entire ordeal had begun only as a means to defend their homes, to a man they now understood the task that lay before them, the mission to establish a state of Israel.  So as Avi, Baruch, Danny, and Dor began reorganizing and preparing the company for action to open the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem Road, no one complained, all moved with a sense of pride and purpose.  The operation apparently already had a name: "Operation Nachshon," scheduled to begin on 5 April 1948, only days away.

V/R,
Jack

Wow!

 

Cheers - Phil

Thanks guys, I appreciate it!

Wait; Lemmey, is that 'wow,' like 'wow, what a great fight,' or 'wow' like 'wow, I can't believe he keeps posting this @#$%'?

V/R,
Jack

Wow, like, wow!

Dammit...



V/R,
Jack

Very good

Take care

Andy

All,

AKA, the first fight in Operation Nachshon

It is 0630 on 6 April 1948, and the company is going into action as part of Operation Nachshon, the Jewish operation to open the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem Road in order to bring relief to the Jewish community in Jerusalem.  While the men of the company were fighting to defend their homes in the village of Mar Gush, west of Jerusalem, Arab Liberation Army forces under Abd Al-Qadr Al-Husayni completed their encirclement of Jerusalem.  A convoy bound for the Jewish Quarter (in Jerusalem) was ambushed on 31 March 1948, forced back with the loss of five vehicles and seventeen dead.  Plans were made to mount as much offensive power as possible in order to re-open the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem Road; the company, now more or less formally recognized as part of the Haganah (Jewish military), was included in those plans.

It is now 6 April 1948; on 3 April Jewish forces attacked the Palestinian village of Al-Qastal.  Fighting has raged there for several days.  The company is now being thrown into the fight, and Captain Avi Peled, the company commander, is personally leading the first action.  He has maneuvered the company southeast of Al-Qastal, sneaking up behind an enemy machine gun position that has pinned down members of the Jewish Etzioni Brigade, which is trying to reinforce members of its unit cut off in Al-Qastal.  Avi has Lt Baruch Eitan and his 1st Platoon with him, and they're plan is not only to eliminate the pesky Palestinian machine gun position, but then to attack into Al-Qastal itself.  Following the battle of Mar Gush, Avi reorganized the company (which is actually platoon-strength), so that now each platoon (squad) has eight men (if you're not aware, casualties were pretty heavy).


Overview, north is up.  At top left is Raftan Hill, where the Palestinians have a machine gun that is holding up the Etzioni Brigade from making contact with troops they have cut off in the village of Al-Qastal (off camera to top), while at bottom right is Balagan Hill.  A dirt track runs between the two, and at bottom left you can see an Arab farmer's humble abode.

At top left you can see a number of Palestinians on Raftan Hill, which is the position that needs knocking out so the Etzioni Brigade can get moving.  Down at bottom center you can see the Jewish 1st Platoon.  But at bottom right you can see something the Jews are unaware of: the Palestinians have another, supporting position up on Balagan Hill!


"Quiet boys, and follow me."    Avi and Baruch lead the men across the dirt track (right), closing in on the enemy position (top left), as the former Jewish Brigade Sergeant, Eli Rabat, and the old WWI veteran of the German Army, Abel Landau, set up the machine gun (center right bottom). They are quite unaware of the enemy machine gun position behind them... To see how the fight went, please check the blog at:
http://swordofgideonwargaming.blogspot.com/2017/07/war-for-independence-fight-5.html

In any case, the world keeps turning.  Freed up by 1st Platoon knocking out the machine gun position, the Etzioni Brigade pushes into the village of Al-Qastal, taking it, but then being pushed back out.  The next morning the company was holding security to the south of Al-Qastal when orders came down: Etzioni Brigde was again making a push from the east, but the Arab Liberation Army had strongpointed an old Roman fort on the outskirts of the town.  High Command wanted the company to make a nighttime assault to eliminate the enemy position.

Avi turned to Danny Tzur, the leader of the 2nd Platoon: "my friend, prepare your men."

V/R,
Jack

Big big fight!

Excellent scrap !

Cheers - Phil

Thanks Lemmey and Phil!

I should be able to post the next batrep tomorrow.

V/R,
Jack